Archive for Branding
Rebranding My WordPress Blog
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If they can rebrand, so can I
If you’re a subscriber, you may have a noticed a change in the look of Write Speak Sell. You would be right. I have changed templates from the Red Essence to the Flexx theme, which, as it indicates, is a flexible theme with more options.
Why did I do this? I advise clients on sharpening their brands. But I felt my own was a little fuzzy with my old theme. A tab in the navigation bar for “Business Writing” was just too generic. My business has evolved over the past year and I’ve been gravitating to three focused offerings: blog and web copy, employee engagement and branding. Now even the term branding is a little broad, but it’s such a recognized term that I think people will get it. The top three widgets with these services tell visitors right away what I do – and they are “above the fold.” That is, they are visible even on the small screen of a laptop.
If I can get it working properly, I’ve also added a new podcast product called audioboo, which allows me to create podcasts on my IPhone and they are published directly to my blog. Neat. It’s a small technical problem that I will get worked out shortly.
My categories and blog role are now on my home page and I’ve added a search box. I still need to add content to my right sidebar on my home page because there is quite a bit of white space there. I’m open to suggestions.
It’s a constant process – tweaking, trimming, adding to – and hopefully — improving a business. That’s why I thought I’d share my process with you. Any thoughts about how you’ve adapted and changed your brand or business model? Would love to hear from you.
Annual Report Time: Don’t Forget Your Employees in Communication With Shareholders
Posted by: | CommentsWell, PR Departments in public companies are surely beginning work on their annual reports. They can smell spring in the air – when these symbols of capitalism come rolling off the presses once more. In a reprise of my past admonitions, with a few additions, I implore writers and designers to keep a few things in mind.
- Please make the report more exciting. Notice I did not say interesting. Splash some color on the pages, use a large typeface so oldsters can read the copy, especially if you’re using reverse type. Use bold, brash headlines. Most readers will be viewing the report online so make it compelling and dispense with flash and any other doohickey that slows down loading or distracts the viewer.
- Remember the company has employees. Yes, many fewer of them, but they still are the backbone of the company. I was shocked last year when I perused the annual reports of several of the largest Fortune 500 companies and found they had not a single photo or story about an employees. It is disappointing to think they merited so little recognition.
- Make it sell. The report should very strategically position the organization as the leader in its space, developing new paradigms of products and services.
- Use Testimonials. Words out of the mouths of your customers and employees can bring the vision statement to life. Let them tell the reader what a great company this is.
So, if you’re assigned to create this year’s annual report, how do you ensure it accurately represents the organization and has a long, active life after it’s been printed and distributed? Here are my suggestions:
- Get the CEO involved from the get-go. Do not even think of hiring a writer or design firm until you have met with the CEO to understand how s/he wishes the organization to be positioned in the document. S/he cannot delegate this discussion to someone else.
- Write a creative platform that describes the overall theme and tone of the annual report, its content and “look.” Get the CEO to sign off on it.
- Solicit in-put from the key people in your organization who would most likely use the annual report throughout the year such as the head of sales, director of development, director of public and community affairs, and so on. What do they want emphasized in the report? Find out what would make them use it during the year to help them achieve their goals.
- Make a mock-up of the report, page by page. It doesn’t need to be fancy. Take some legal paper and fold the sheets in half. It’s essential to know the content of every page and ideas for photos, charts, etc.
- Now you can meet with your design firm and writer, if that’s not you. Everyone should be working from the approved creative platform and mock-up. Believe me, they will love you for it.
- Show two to three designs to the CEO with the mock-up. If you’ve done your job right, s/he will have a tough time picking out the winner, because s/he will love them all.
- Be true to the creative platform as you go through the process of developing the report. Be excited as it begins to unfold as a living, breathing document that will take on a life of its own for a year. Don’t be afraid to be a little gutsy with the copy and design. You’re not creating the next Bible, after all.
So, with these humble bits of advice, good luck and go forth!
Why is Coke, the #1 Brand in Economic Value, Only #12 in Mentions Online?
Posted by: | CommentsYou’d think that Coca-Cola, long #1 on Interbrand’s “Best Global Brands List,” would achieve the same prominence on the Internet. But, no, Coke only ranks 12th based on number of mentions online in 2009, according to an analysis by Sysmos, a company that provides business intelligence on social media.
There could be many reasons for the variation, including a lack of social media communications programs. The variation is also seen among other top ranked Interbrand brands. For example #2 IBM slides to #15 in online mentions. Conversely, and perhaps not surprisingly, Google is #1 in online mentions while #7 on Interbrand’s list, which is based on financial data, international scope, and value added. Only Microsoft achieves equality, at #3 in both the “Best Global Brands List” and with mentions online.
So, why does it matter that a company is tops in economic value but below par online? I believe that it will begin to matter much, much more in coming years, as the Internet increasingly becomes the principal source of information about companies and everything else. If your company is not commanding the Internet among consumers, you may no longer be dominating the marketplace. But leading brands have it in their power to improve their online rankings.
One way is by enlisting their employees as brand advocates in corporate communications. Employees are already surfing the web and participating in social networks like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. Large companies have a golden opportunity to dominate the Internet “air waves” with their employees as their most important cheerleaders, commenting on corporate and employee blogs, and engaging in online conversations with consumers.
Getting back to Coke, the company has 3.7 million fans on Facebook, and 92,4000 employees spread across the globe. Just think of their cumulative power to communicate key messages about Coke that zoom around the world on social networks. I wonder if Coke has an organized program for their employees to reach out to Coke’s followers on social networks? I read through last year’s Annual Review and didn’t see anything. I don’t mean to pick on Coke. I’m just using the company as an example of a missed opportunity.
Employees in all companies will welcome the opportunity to be empowered to represent their company in the blogosphere. All it takes is trust: trust your employees to promote your brand well in online communications.
